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Let Food Be Thy Medicine: Cinnamon and Alzheimer’s

Dec. 11, 2013|275 views

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There’s
an old saying. A prescription for health, you might say. “Let
food be thy medicine. Let medicine be thy food.”
It’s
attributed to the father of medicine; the ancient Greek physician, Hippocrates.

It’s
almost as if he knew, thousands of years ago, what scientists are rediscovering
every day in labs and centers of learning around the world: Food can be
powerful medicine. I was reminded of this recently, when I read about research
that shows that cinnamon probably helps prevent Alzheimer’s
disease.

Alzheimer’s
robs the mind of memory, decision making capacity, and eventually, perhaps even
the ability to recognize loved ones. It’s an awful disease, caused by changes
in certain proteins in the brain. A protein called “tau” plays
a key role in maintaining the architecture of nerve cells For reasons that are
not entirely clear, in some people this protein undergoes abnormal chemical
changes, which ultimately causes tau to become entangled like overgrown weeds
and vines. This causes nerve cells to break down.

Two
chemicals naturally present in the culinary spice, cinnamon, interfere with the
formation of these disease-causing tangles. In the lab, they’ve
even allowed tangles to relax and untangle. Researchers at the University of
California, Santa Barbara have shown that chemicals in cinnamon protect tau
protein from the changes that usually lead to Alzheimer’s.
All of which shows, once again, that food can be powerful medicine.

Are
you a fan of cinnamon? I’d love to hear about your favorite
uses for this lovely, healthful spice.